Power-indicator for spring-motors



F. RITCHIE.

POWER INDICATOR FOR SPRING MOTORS.

APPLICATION vFILED JA-N.10, I921.

Patented June 14, 1921.

fnwnfar.

7 I Altarnqy.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIJ UNITED STATES IPZPATENT OFFICE. i

FOSTER nr'rcnrn, or EALING, ENGLA D.

POWER-INDICATOR FOR SPRING-MOTORS.

To azz whom it may concern Be it known-that I, Fos'rnn R-rromn, av

citizen of the United States of America, at present residing at13- Florence road, Ealing, in the county of Middlesex, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in Power-Indicators for Spring-Motors, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to a device for indicating the power of a spring or springs used to actuate motors, such for example as are used in *amophones and phonographs, and which cevice shows by its pointer or dial, the extent to which such a motor may be used before rewinding is necessary.

It further relates to operating the device by its engagement with the existing screws usually employed in holding the spring barrels together, or by clips carrying projections attached to the spring barrels.

According to this invention a toothed wheel engages a plurality of screws one of which is rotated by the winding of the motor and the other by the unwinding thereof. The turning of either screw causes the toothed wheel to rotate and to roll upon one of the screws which is stationary or which rotates at a slower speed, the latter being the case when winding and unwinding occur simultaneously.

lhe accompanying drawlngs lllustrate the preferred form of the invention.

Figure 1 being a front vie-w of the device,

Fig. 2 a sectional view on the line YZ of Flg. 1 and Fig. 3 a front view of a modified form of operating member.

Referring to the drawlngs, a, a are screws mounted in bearings b, b and b 5 and carrying star or toothed wheels c, 0 which engage screw heads or other pro ections from a portion of the spring drums e and 6 The drum 6 is rotated clockwise in winding the motor and in so doing causes the screw a to partly rotate, each time a projection (Z en gages a tooth of the wheel 0. The rotating of screw a which is right-handed, causes the toothed wheel w to rotate and roll in a downward direction upon the screw a The projections d from the drum 0 engage in a similar manner with a star wheel Specification of Letters Patent. Patented J n 14 1921 1 Application filed January 10, 1921. Serial No. 436,080i. V i

to allow said journal to traverse a path parallel to the axes of the screws a and (1, The lever. k v1s pivoted at f and has its end g connected by a link Z to the 'tail't of a structed for clasping a motor drum a and having projections d one of which may be formed by one or both of the outwardly turned ends of the clip 00, which ends are drawn one toward the other by the screw y.

I claim 1. A power indicator for spring motors comprising a toothed wheel, a plurality of screw threaded members each member having a thread in mesh with teeth of the said toothed wheel, means for rotating each member, means for indicating the extent of motion of the axis of said toothed wheel in a plane parallel to the axes of said screwthreaded members, and means for supporting the parts of the device, substantially as described.

2. A power indicator for spring motors comprising a toothed Wheel having an axial journal, a pair of screw-threadedmembers each member having a thread inmesh with teeth of the said toothed wheel and means for rotating each member, in combination with a pivoted lever arranged to be oscil lated by said axial journal, means for connecting said lever with an indicator pointer and means for supporting the parts of the device, substantially as described.

3. A power indicator for spring motors comprising in combination, a toothed wheel having an axial journal, a pair of screw threaded members each member having a thread in mesh with teeth of the said toothed wheel, a star wheel fixed on each of said members and having teeth arranged for en gagement by projections on a rotating part of said spring motor, a bell-crank lever having one arm slotted lengthwise for receiving the said axial journal and having its other end pierced for connection to a link, a pointer pivoted between its ends, a graduated scale parallel to the path of said pointer, a link for connecting that arm of the pointer opposite its indicating end to the pierced end of said bell-crank lever and means for supporting the parts of the device, substantially as described for the purposes specified.

4. A power indicatorfor spring motors comprising in combination, a toothed Wheel having an axial journal, a pair of'screW' threaded members, each member having a thread in mesh With teeth of the said toothed Wheel, a star Wheel fixed on each of said members and having .teeth arranged for engagement by detachable clip projections secured on a rotating part of the said spring motor, a bell-crank lever having one arm slotted lengthwise for receiving the said axial journal and having its other end pierced for connection to a link, a pointer pivoted between its ends a graduated scale parallel to the path of said pointer, a link for connecting that arm of thepointer oppositeits indicatin-gend to the pierced end of said bell crank lever and means for supporting the parts of the device, substantially as described for the purposes specified.

FOSTER RITCHIE. 

